Apparatus for cutting the inner sole of a shoe



(3- D. TlLSON April 16, 1957 APPARATUS FOR CUTTING THE- INNER SOLE OF A SHOE 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 1, 1955 C. D. TILSON April 16, 1957 APPARATUS FOR CUTTING THE INNER SOLE OF A SHOE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 1, 1955 Tiiwow,

Ciaude April 16, 1957 c. D. TILSON 2,788,535

APPARATUS FOR CUTTING THE INNER SOLE OF A SHOE C. D. TILSON April 16, 1957 APPARATUS FOR CUTTING THE INNER SOLE OF A SHOE Filed June 1, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 AIIIIIIIIII Tifisoiib, 6y a.

April 16, 1957 c. D. TILSON 2,788,535

APPARATUS FOR CUTTING THE INNER SOLE OF A SHOE Filed June 1, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Iawenfoa- Oiazuie Tiisow, 6 y 7254M fliioflzzeg;

United States Patent APPARATUS FOR CUTTING THE INNER SOLE OF A SHOE Claude D. Tllson, Candia, N. H., asslgnor to Bain Corpogtion, Cambridge, Mass., a corporation of Massausetts Application June 1, 1955, Serial No. 512,494

2 Claims. (Cl. 12-17) This invention relates to a sole cutting machine and, more particularly, to a machine for skiving an inner sole blank in order to remove portions of the blank occurring within the marginal edges of such a member.

Material, when thus removed, leaves an inner sole blank body having increased flexibility at selected points which are chosen to overlie sole insert pads of rubber filler or other material with the end result of added comfort to the wearer of a shoe in which the inner sole blank is incorporated. In carrying out such a cutting operation, the initial feeding position of the inner sole with respect to its cutting mechanism may vary in accordance with the length of the inner sole which is being dealt with as well as the thickness of sole portion which may be desired to be left after the skiving operation. Difficulty may also be experienced in conveniently locating the skiving element in a correct skiving position with respect to the inner sole in order to take care of both left and right soles.

It is an object of the invention to provide a sole cutting machine of the general character indicated and to devise a sole cutting and feeding mechanism which may be conveniently adjusted to handle a range of sole sizes in either rights or lefts and so as to correctly locate the areas of cutting in a desired relationship to the marginal edges of the forepart of any desired size sole.

These and other objects and features will be more fully understood and appreciated from the following description of preferred embodiments of the invention selected for purposes of illustration and shown in the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a .plan view showing the cutting machine of the invention with an inner sole member indicated in broken lines in a skiving position;

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the machine further illustrating gear means for operating the feeding and cutting mechanism;

Fig. 3 is a front elevational view of the machine indicating the foot operated crank mechanism associated with the gear driving means illustrated in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a rear elevational view of the machine;

Fig. 5 is a view in elevation and partial cross-section taken substantially centrally of the machine and further illustrating the cutting roll and feed mechanism of the machine; and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a sole member which has been skived in accordance with the invention.

The principal parts of my cutting machine comprise an upright frame member having a cutter blade adjustably secured therein, and feed means including a continuously driven spring-mounted lower roll, an intermittently driven roll having a sole impresser piece mounted on its periphery, and a sole advancing guide mechanism having an adjustable dual heel seat. Suitable gear means are provided for driving the mechanism, including a single-revolution clutch and crank device for periodically actuating the sole advancing guide mecha: msm.

2,788,535 Patented Apr. 16, 1957 In general, the mechanism operates to position a sole of a given size in correct relationship with respect to the upper roll and its sole impresser piece and to then advance the sole so that it is, for a short interval, engaged between the sole impresser piece and an adjacent surface of the lower roll, at which time selective cutting takes place. Thereafter, the sole is disengaged so that cutting is interrupted and the sole may be freely removed by an operator.

Referring more in detail to the structure shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 5, numeral 2 denotes a frame resting on feet 3 and comprising a rectangularly shaped enclosure at the upper side of which is transversely supported a cutter blade 4. The cutter blade is adjustably secured on a cutter base 6 which extends between two opposite sides of the frame, as shown. The base 6 is provided with locking screws, as 8, which are adapted to extend through slots 10 and 12 formed in the cutter blade, as best shown in Fig. 1. Loosening the screws permits the cutter blade to be moved rearwardly or forwardly to a desired spaced relationship to the nip line of upper and lower feed rolls 14 and 16, as suggested in Fig. 5. A discharge chute 18 located immediately below the cut: ter base 6 is screwed at either side of the frame by screws as 20, as noted in Fig. 5, and provides a passageway for discharging sole portions which are cut off or skived by the cutter blade 4.

Considering next the means for feeding an inner sole blank against the cutter blade, there is included for this purpose, in addition to the two rolls 14 and 16 already noted, a sole advancing guide mechanism, a principal element of which is a dual heel seat member 22 adapted to be moved in timed relationship with respect to the roll 14.

Each of the rolls 16 and 14, as well as the guide mechanism, will now be discussed in detail. As shown in Figs. 1, 4 and 5, the lower roll is constructed with opposite shaft ends rotatably supported in bearing portions 26a of a bearing block 26. These bearing portions 26a are guided for vertical adjustment in openings as 28 formed in the sides of the frame. The bearing block 26 is spring mounted on a pair of spaced-apart springs 29 and 30, the upper ends of which are received in recesses found in the bearing block and the lower ends of which are held in special spring seats 32 and 34, as noted in Figs. 4 and 5. The seats 32 and 34 are in turn carried on threaded adjustment members 36 and 38 threaded into a bed plate 40.

The upper roll 14 is also provided with reduced extremities rotatably mounted in suitable bearing members as 42 (Fig. 5). The bearings 42 are also guided for vertical movement in the ways 28, already described, and it will be observed that these bearing blocks are suspended on a pair of threaded adjustment bolts 44 and 46, as best shown in Fig. 5. These adjustment screws 44 and 46 are received through a top plate 48 which extends across the two upper sides of the machine, as shown in Fig. 5, and at the'upper extremities the screws 44 and 46 are provided with indicator dials 50 and 52.

By rotating the screws, the indicator members are turned into register with respective register points 54 and 56, as shown in Fig. 1, to thereby denote any desired vertical spacing value for the roll 14 with respect to the cutting blade 4. It is pointed out that, in the normal adjustment of the two rolls and cutting blade, the cutting blade edge will normally be located just in front and slightly above the nip point of the roll 16, as suggested in Fig. 5. At the same time, in this relative position of adjustment of the blade 4 and lower roll 16, the upper roll 14 will be arranged in substantially spaced relation to the lower roll, as illustrated in Fig. 5. This is due to the fact that the periphery of the roll 14 throughout a part of its circumference has been recessed as shown.

At a point substantially opposite to the point of recessing of the periphery of roll 14 is mounted on the same periphery a sole impresser piece 60 which projects radially outwardly for an appreciable distance so that when the roll 14.is rotated around into a position approximately 1'80" from that position shown .in Fig. 5, the irnpresser piece 60 will be adapted to engage against a sole blank at the particular area of the impresser piece and firmly hold the sole blank against the lower roll 6 for a short period of time during which the cutting edge of the blade 4 carries out its skiving function.

The impresser piece 60 may be of any desired shape and thickness and may be chosen in the form shown or in other desired ways and, by adjusting the mechanism described, the cutting operation may be carried out so as to remove a part only of the shoe sole or the cut may extend all the way through to produce a hole in the sole.

In order to guide the travel of a sole blank in timed relation to rotation of the roll 14 and especially in predetermined positional relationship with respect to the impresser piece 60, it is essential to guide the blank from two opposite sides. This provides correct lateral register while, at the same time, locating the toe of the blank a sufficient distance from the roll nip so that a proper register with the forepart of the sole and the impression piece 60 may be realized. For the lateral positioning, I have provided a side guide mechanism including two side plate members 62 and 64. These parts are fixed to respective carrier blocks 66 and 68 adapted to be adjustably positioned on right and left threaded screws 7% and 72, the two ends of which are mounted in opposite sides of the frame, as shown in Fig. 1. An adjustment head 74 is provided to facilitate turning the double acting screw to obtain a correct spacing of the members 62 and 64, as may be readily understood from an inspection ofFigs. 1 and 5. The side guide assembly described may be, for example, permanently mounted on side plate members 76, as shown in Fig. 5.

The longitudinal adjustment is accomplished by a special dual heel seat element 22 which may be located in a desired spaced relationship with respect to the rolls 14 and 16, as has been suggested diagrammatically in Fig. 1. This heel seat element 22 consists of a plate member along the forward edge of which is formed a pair of curved recesses 22a and 22b. One or the other of these is adapted to have received thereagainst the rearmost heel portion of a sole, depending upon whether it is a right or left. The curved recesses are formed so as to locate a sole in a slightly angled position suitable for making an adjustment, depending upon whether the sole blank may be a right or a left.

I I The sole guide heel seat has formed integrally therewith a centrally projecting section 22' which is guided for sliding movement between a pair of guide plates 8%) and 82 fixed in the upper side of the machine frame, as ndicated in Figs. 1 and 5, and located through the proecting section 22' are a number of adjustment holes 34 into which may be selectively inserted a locking pin 86. Thelatter member is spring mounted on a spring member 88 (Fig. in turn received in a supporting element 90 centrally located above a pin 92. On this locking pin '86 is provided a projection 94, and arranged to engage 7 against the projection 94 is an operating arm 96 which can be turned through an operating handle 98 fixed to a rodmember 100 which extends'between the two sides of the frame of the machine, as shown in Fig. 3. A spring 102 normally operates to hold the handle 98 in an uprightposition, such as shown in Fig. S. This handle is preferably located at the extreme end of the rod 100 so-that it occurs outside of the frame of themachine, as shown .in Fig. 3.

The center support 90 and itspin92pivotally supports 4 a link 106 which in turn has pinned to it at 108 another link 110 terminating at its lower endin a sleeve 112 fixed to a shaft member 114, as shown in Fig. 3, on which is a crank 111.

Power is supplied from a motor M (Fig. 1) through a belt and pulley B and P, respectively. Pulley P is fast on a shaft S rotatably mounted through two opposite sides of the frame, as indicated in Fig. 1. On shaftS at an opposite end from the pulley P is a gear G in mesh with a second .gear G fast on a shaft S (Fig. l). The shaft S is rotatably mounted through two sides of the frame (Fig. 4) and carries the lower roll 16 already noted. The operation of these parts is such that, when the motor runs, it constantly drives the lower roll 16.

Also mounted on shaft S adjacent pulley P is a small gear G1 (Figs. 2 and 3) in mesh with a gear G2 fixed to a stub shaft S3 rotatably mounted in the frame above shaft S. A sprocket gear G3 is free on shaft S3 and carries a sprocket chain C passing around a sprocket gear G4 fast on a shaft S4. A gear G5, also fast on shaft S4, meshes with a'ge'ar Go fasten a shaft 85. Another sprocket gear G7 on shaft S5 drives a second chain C1 passing around a sprocket gear G8. The latter sprocket is fast on a shaft S6. Crank 111 is attached to gear G4 (Fig. 2).

Normally, with motor M running, the gear G1 drives gear G2 and rotates shaft S3. This shaft is free to turn in a clutch sleeve extension E (Fig. 4) forming an integral part of the sprocket gear G3 which, as noted above, is free to turn on the shaft S3. The clutch sleeve B may be of any desired type, such as a conventional ball jamming mechanism and cylindrical race which allows the shaft to remain free to turn as long as the sleeve is held in a locked position but which instantly engages the shaft in driving relationship with the clutch sleeve when the latter member is released. i

To selectively hold the clutch sleeve element B, there is provided a pawl A pivotally supported at F and operated by an arm H having attached thereto a spring-held rod I. The lower end of the rodis connected to a bell crank K (Fig. 3) supported at the base of the machine, and a linkage L and treadle T provide a means for releasing the pawl A from a cam projection W on the clutch sleeve B. When this occurs, the sprocket G3 starts to rotate through one complete revolution and drives its chain C, together with sprocket G4, G7, chain C1, sprocket G8, shaft S6 and the upper roll 14. At the end of one complete revolution of the clutch sleeve E, the pawl A again engages the cam projection W and the sprocket drive is interrupted with the roll 14 coming to rest.

In operation, an operator may, for example, stand a one side of the machine in a convenient position to rest one foot on the treadle T. In this position, the operator picks up a sole blank from a suitable supply point and places the sole blank on the table in front of the rolls 14 and 16 with one heel being fitted against a desired curved heel recess in the sole advancing element so as to arrange the sole blank in a slightly angled position, such as suggested in broken lines in Fig. 1.

To adjust the sole with respect to the cutting blade, the operator disengages the locking pin from the slide element 22 by working the handle 98 and thereafter moves the slide into a position such that the toe of the sole blankis located in close-proximity to the nip of rolls Y14* and .16. The locking pin 8.6 is then released and the treadle T is depressed, disengaging the clutch mechanism above described. Both rolls 14 and 16 then rotate until the presser element 69 engages thetoe portion of the sole blank against the lower roll 16. Immediately thereafter the presser element forces those portions of the sole blank with which it is in contact against the blade 4. Material is then removed for a shortinterval while the sole blank is engaged by the resser element 66. Shortly thereafter thepresserelementrotates around into a position at which it moves out of engagement with the sole blank and roll 16 and, at this point, the sole blank is no longer held at any point and can be readily pulled forwardly out of the machine by the operator.

It will be evident from the foregoing description that I have provided a rapid, accurate and convenient means of adjusting a wide range of sole blanks to undergo a cutting operation, the depth of which may be varied as desired and the location of the cut area may be correctly positioned with the sole in a slightly angled position. Means are provided for positioning either right or left soles in such a way as to provide for correct individual angling for either right or left sole blanks at anytime and with the same longitudinal adjustment being suitable for either a left or right sole blank.

By means of the apparatus described, a single operator may stand at the side of the machine and rapidly feed sole blanks in at one side of the rolls 14 and 16 and remove from the opposite side of the rolls the skived product.

It is intended that the combination of a timed roll engaging mechanism with a special sole advancing slide mechanism may be embodied in other forms than that illustrated in the drawings, for example, other types of clutch mechanisms and means for producing a single revolution operation may be utilized. Similarly, various other driving arrangements may be employed and, in general, various changes and modifications may be resorted to in keeping with the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A sole cutting machine comprising a frame, a cutter blade transversely disposed in said frame, a lower roll mounted for rotation in front of the cutter blade, an upper roll having a sole impresser piece mounted on the periphery thereof and arranged to move into engagement with the said lower roll for a short interval, means for locating a sole blank in a position to move through the rolls in predetermined relationship with respect to the impresser piece, gear means for constantly driving the lower roll, and driving means including a single revolution clutch mechanism for intermittently driving the said upper roll.

2. A sole cutting machine comprising a frame, a cutter blade transversely disposed in said frame, a lower roll mounted for rotation in front of the cutter blade, an upper roll having a sole impresser piece mounted on the periphery thereof and arranged to move into engagement with the said lower roll for a short interval, means for locating a sole blank in a position to move through the rolls in predetermined relationship with respect to the impresser piece, means for constantly driving the lower roll, means including a single revolution clutch for intermittently driving the upper roll, and a control linkage and foot treadle apparatus for releasing the said single revolution clutch mechanism.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 230,280 Holton July 20, 1880 250,734 Holton Dec. 13, 1881 1,382,689 Stew-art June 28, 1921 2,082,057 Hood June 1, 1937 2,125,959 Seely Aug. 9, 1938 2,319,324 Hood May 18, 1943 FOREIGN PATENTS 14,812 Switzerland July 19, 1897 

